


Past Offences

by WindwiseWords



Series: Xenogen City [42]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: Aggressive Parents, Cuddling & Snuggling, Disobeying Orders, Eggs, Feeding, Fluff, M/M, Medical Examination, Mentions of Eating Seeker Eggs, Mentions of Infantcide, Nesting, Platonic Life Partners, Platonic Romance, Seekers, Transformer Sparklings, kind of?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-14
Updated: 2016-12-14
Packaged: 2018-09-08 14:37:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8848864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WindwiseWords/pseuds/WindwiseWords
Summary: Optimus and Ratchet come to check on their wayward scout, only to find Alpha Bravo refusing to let them in. A little squeeze never stopped Prime, and soon he and his medic find the nest. Red Wing is less than pleased, history dictating what may happen.





	

**Author's Note:**

> More of these two was requested so here they are! Relationship is kind of a platonic love I suppose, a partnership bond but without sex? (Yet. Haven't made up my mind on that.)

“For the last time Alpha Bravo, I’m not going to hurt him. I—Hey!” Ratchet grunted as the young helibot toppled yet another rock over the entrance to a broad cave system. Optimus Prime pulled him back and watched Alpha Bravo glare and cross his arms.

He decided to pull the leader card. “Alpha Bravo, let Ratchet see Red Wing. That is an order.” Optimus rumbled, watching anger then fear then defiance cross the young mech.

Alpha Bravo shook his head and crossed his arms. “Sorry Optimus Prime, I wouldn’t let Primus himself in this cave.” And with that he pushed the last stone down and jumped back in a hole. They could climb up and reach it but the grounders’ frames wouldn’t fit easily. Any expansion risked collapsing the only known entrance.

The leader rubbed his forehead, letting the frustration out seeing as Ratchet was the only mech there. “If what our research says is true, Red Wing probably is injured.” A seeker only hid this well if death knocked on their door and the open air threatened that death. Alpha Bravo gave them little to go off of, and demanded they not come near the system of caves.

Ratchet looked more angry than frustrated and kicked a rock blocking their path. “That boy best have a great explanation for this when I—Optimus! Let’s set a net trap.” The excitable old medic rushed off to start climbing, probably to lay pegs for an invisible net. They’d figure this mystery out yet, by catching the next flyer that came out of that hole.

 

Two days after laying his eggs and Red Wing still felt weak and sore as Alpha Bravo fed him energon with a small smile. The eggs themselves, all eleven, were comfortably situated in a makeshift slip on his side. Just to keep them close for warmth. The hint of a spark in each grew quickly into a full fledgling spark, with a beat and all.

“Any ideas for names?” Alpha Bravo asked excitedly, moving to lay by Red Wing’s side and curl toward him and the eggs. The older seeker grinned and pulled one out, the bright red one. He offered it to his companion.

“Thinking Delta for this one.” Alpha Bravo’s eyes went wide, realizing the correlation between the sparkling’s name and his. Red Wing smiled and leaned to rest his head on Alpha Bravo. “We have the strangest partnership going on here. What did you tell Optimus and Ratchet?” Red Wing looked nervous; after explaining a history of grounders raiding seekers’ nests to eat the eggs. Alpha Bravo was convinced Optimus Prime, even before Primacy would never have done that. If the stories of his rising to leadership meant anything at all.

“I told them I couldn’t let them in. Plain and simple. They think you’re injured… Red Wing, you eventually have to let Ratchet look at you and your clutch.” Our clutch, Alpha Bravo reminded himself. The youngling agreed to take on the title of their sire, to claim them as his own. Nobody would believe it but the seekers and Autobots accepted a substitute sire for certain.

Red Wing groaned quietly and shook his head. “I don’t want grounders anywhere _near_ my sparklings—“A crack of rock made them both freeze.

Out of the shadows red and blue and grey came with hands raised. How the prime fit himself in that hole bared no mystery. Optimus Prime detached heavy armored plating to squeeze into the hole. “I bear no ill will for either of you. Red Wing, are you injured or— Primus…”

The last word was whispered, and the Prime realized he invaded a nesting pair’s den. Alpha Bravo perched himself on edge, no chance of taking on the prime in any battle but would guard his nest with his life anyway.

Red Wing shuffled the sling of eggs closer and stared suspiciously and nervously. “I’m just tired, Prime.” There was a bit to the title that would have made most bots flinch.

“I… Assume the reason is your…” Prime found himself wondering how to handle this properly. A disobedient youngling, a carefree troublemaking seeker, and they had a nest of eggs. A lot of them if his scans revealed anything. He glanced away to think, and when he looked back he nodded slowly. “I understand your behavior, Alpha Bravo. I will not punish either of you for disobeying orders to respond. Red Wing.”

The red seeker looked up and his yellow optics went wide. Again he pulled his clutch closer. Optimus knew that fearful look, seen in data long ago in his library days. “Just don’t take them away. Please.”

Optimus could see panic building between the pair and decided to slowly sit down where he stood. They relaxed a fraction, enough to understand his purpose of coming here. “I did not come to take your young away. I came because you are under my leadership, Red Wing, and I need to know my people are all safe and well-cared for. I can see Alpha Bravo has cared and kept you safe.” He took a silent moment and nodded slowly. “In the past seekers have lost many eggs to grounders, but never once was I a part of that practice. And if I find anyone thinks that is okay, there will be justice.”

Red Wing studied Prime for a few minutes, everyone sitting in silence until another loud crash made all three jump. “Optimus, this is not the first time I’ve crawled down a hole to hell to follow you but—Primus!” A louder exclamation than the Prime; they all smiled a bit as Ratchet came closer to the nest, crouching down to crawl on creaky struts toward the nest.

Red Wing decided to allow the medic close, but as a hand came too close to his brood he flicked his wings up and Alpha Bravo snarled. Optimus moved to pull him away but Ratchet waved him off. “Nehp Ehp Ehp! I’ve been working with seeker and grounder creators. They always get finicky on their first exam…” Ratchet carefully inched a hand closer, ignoring the growls and aggressive wing twitching and clattering. Inch by inch he managed to lay just a fingertip on Delta, and instantly did a scan.

Something about the ever-so-careful tap to his first born made Red Wing relax. This medic was here to help his young, not take them away. Carefully the red seeker opened up the slip of fabric and let the eggs roll softly into the nest. “Just don’t pick them up.” He growled and Ratchet nodded, lost in his work.

“Yes, yes… Oh. This one is—Do you want to know what is in each? I can’t say for certain but it may help with naming them early.” Surprisingly Red Wing looked to Alpha Bravo, prompting the two grounders to raise a brow. “You sired this clutch? Impressive for a mech your age. More like a miracle of science really.” But Ratchet left it at that.

“Yes, I think it’d be a good idea to know.” Alpha Bravo nodded and smiled at Red Wing who nuzzled against him. Acting like a bonded pair, making the story believable.

And for the next two hours Ratchet proceeded to tell them each egg’s spark ‘type,’ the frames it could have, and if they were mechs or mechas. All were male. Not surprisingly most were seekers, but the golden egg turned out to be a helibot, and the largest a fighter frame similar to Dreadwing: a big tough seeker.

The pair snuggled into each other, curled around their eggs and carefully Red Wing groomed each of Ratchet’s smell. Optimus found the entire scene evoking a protective instinct long buried with the rest of strong emotional cues. One could describe it as fatherly, as humans would say; it made him want to return to ‘his boys,’ Hot Shot and Bumblebee. Without a word more he got up and left for the cave exit, able to push the stones away from the inside.

Ratchet watched him leave and got up to do the same. “Make sure you refuel frequently. I’ll send a package of supplements and books for care but for the most part you two seem to be doing well.” The old mech dusted off his hands and stretched. “Call me if anything worries you, any time of the day.” Ratchet watch them for a moment longer. “Welcome to Xenogen little guys.” He managed a small smile and left to follow his leader.

Red Wing relaxed entirely and huffed. “We should just install a door.” They both paused, then laughed at that and Alpha Bravo got up to fetch energon.

“Can’t believe the gold one is a helibot. Guess that makes us more believable huh?” He smiled and offered the cube to Red Wing’s lips, but the seeker frowned and turned his head away. Pouting often included refusal to eat, A.B. learned. “What did I say?”

“I think us is real. Just not with a spark bond. Some strange friendship, but as far as I care you are the sire to my sparklings.” Red Wing tried to come up with a word and laughed. “Friend with benefits?” And the pair broke into worse laugher until they spluttered and side plating cramped.

“I’ll take that. Grounders sometimes do that with gestalts or close friends… Guess grounders aren’t so bad. At least not all of them.” Alpha Bravo lay down and tried to feed Red Wing again, by now just a bonding moment each time. Red Wing accepted it and nestled into his side.

A comfortable rest settled over them, just drinking fuel and watching the eggs. Names came up and they bickered a bit about that until the seeker chirped, an angry sound that embarrassed him and they both found themselves laughing again. Regardless of sireship or circumstances of raising, Alpha Bravo and Red Wing both knew they’d have a happy home for certain. And neither could wait to hear eleven more little laughs to join their own.


End file.
